


Firehouse 51

by kid05



Category: Glee
Genre: Chicago (City), F/F, Firefighters, Flashbacks, Military, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:54:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 10,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26940961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kid05/pseuds/kid05
Relationships: Santana Lopez/Brittany S. Pierce
Comments: 3
Kudos: 21





	1. Prologue

_'We have a casualty on the first floor, back injury.'_

_"We're on it chief." Santana ran in first, with Brittany following close behind._

_As they ran inside, Santana grabbed the radio on her belt and tried to get in contact with Chief Shuester._

_"Chief we've got eyes on the casualty. Not too far from the front entrance."_

_Nothing. Static. She shook it off, thinking it was nothing._

_"Alright, sir? Can you hear me? My names Brittany Pierce I'm a paramedic from Firehouse 51. If you can hear me, can you move your left hand?"_

_She waited for a response but got nothing._

_"So what? Do we intubate?"_ _Brittany sat there. "C'mon Britt, you're not gonna have me here with you in a week."_

_"No." She finally replied. "We start with some rescue breaths."_

_"Good." Santana smiled. The girls switched places and just as Brittany was about to perform some rescue breaths, there was an explosion and they were knocked unconscious._

* * *

_Santana finally came to, all she could hear was a ringing in her ear. Her PASS device was beeping, and so was Brittany's._

_"Britt? Are you good?" She slowly got up and when she looked over at Brittany nothing seemed to be wrong. She just wasn't moving. "Britt?"_

_Santana crawled closer to her to see that the blonde was still unconscious, and had a metal rebar sticking straight out of her chest._

_"NO! Brittany no!" She scrambled over to her, trying to figure out how she was gonna control the bleeding. Tears were filing her eyes now, her judgement wary. Santana was one of the greatest paramedics in Lima but nothing could've prepared her for this._

_Nothing. No test, no examinations._

_Brittany was the love of her life, and here she was with all the knowledge and training yet she wasn't doing anything. Her hands didn't want to move. She started shaking. She was screaming, and within seconds Lt. Quinn Fabray came running down the stairs. She slid over to Brittany, not knowing what to do as well._

_"San. Santana hey. You need to calm down. Help her." Santana snapped out of it and began to tear her shirt off to expose the wound._

_"It's through and through, Q." There was blood dripping from where the rebar had entered her chest cavity. "We need to stabilize it."_

_As they tried to stabilize it, Brittany came to and started to panic._

_"What happened? What the.. San?" A single tear fell from the corner of her eye, and Santana grabbed onto her hand. "It hurts, San."_

_"Don't worry okay babe? We're gonna get you outta here. I promise."_

_Brittany started screaming, the pain was unbearable. Santana cringed at the sound of her girlfriend in pain. She squeezed Brittany's hand harder._

_"I'm sorry babe. I'm so sorry." Her heart had basically ripped in half. Another paramedic team had been called to the scene and was now running in with a gurney._

_She turned to Santana. Her blue eyes didn't have their usual perky glow to them. "San. I love you. I love..." And she went unconscious again._

_"Britt? No. Brittany? Brittany?!" Quinn pulled Santana away from her just as her eyes shut but she was desperately trying to get back to her. The paramedics were now getting Brittany onto the gurney and prepping her to be moved. "Baby I love you! No! Quinn let me go!"_

_Santana was putting up a good fight but Quinn was doing her best to hold her back. The strong woman she knew and loved was now a sobbing mess on the ground. Blood on her hands, tears falling from her eyes. Quinn sat next to her and threw her arms around her, with tears filling her eyes. She held onto her as tight as she could. A huge puddle of blood was in front of them, and that's when she realized that her best friends life now hung in the balance and there was nothing they could do to help._


	2. Welcome to 51

**6 Years Ago**

Brittany S. Pierce hadn't been a paramedic for a long time. Maybe about a year or so. She had served as a Combat Medic in the Army, which included one tour to Afghanistan. She was being assigned to a new firehouse today.

She had heard good things about the house, especially about the paramedic in charge. As she walked into the house, she saw a guy wiping down the side of Truck 5.

"Hey." The man turned and smiled. He had blonde hair and a huge mouth.

"Oh. Hi." He held out his hand. "I'm Sam Evans. You must be the new paramedic."

"Yeah that would be me." She took his hand in hers and they shook. A taller man in a collared shirt came walking over.

"You must be Pierce, right?" Brittany nodded her head. "I'm Lt. Finn Hudson with Truck 5."

"It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard a lot about you." As he finished his sentence, a latina girl with long black hair came walking out.

"Pierce?" Her smile was magnificent. It made Brittany smile. "I'm Lopez. Welcome to Firehouse 51. Here I'll show you around."

They walked around Truck 5 and saw Squad 20. The truck was polished to perfection. A woman was sitting at a table with a couple other guys.

"You guys seriously don't think that Artie can beat me up the ladder."

"It's not that we think that, we _know_ that." The woman started laughing. The guys joined in, laughing right along with her. The man with the gelled hair didn't find it as funny, being that the joke was being made about him.

"Hey guys this is Brittany Pierce, our new paramedic. Pierce this is, Abrams, Anderson, and Chang." As Santana said each name, they waved.

When the blonde woman sitting at the head of the table turned to look at them, Brittany screamed.

"Fabray?!" The woman stood up and hugged Brittany. "Holy shit it's been what, three? Four years?"

"You two know each other?" The Latina looked confused.

"I met Pierce when I was deployed to Afghanistan the second time. She was assigned to my company. She's a damn good medic. That was back when I was only a Specialist and she was a PFC (Private First Class). What did you get out as?"

"Staff Sergeant. I got fast tracked." Quinn nodded approvingly.

"Very impressive. I'm glad we have you with us at 51 now. Santana here is one of the best paramedic in all Northern Ohio." She smiled. "And I have a feeling that you two will get along just fine."

Santana shot a look at Quinn and it made her laugh. Santana's phone started ringing.

"I'll leave you two to catch up for a while. I gotta take this." And she walked away. The rest of the squad guys had left the table so it left the two blondes alone with each other.

"So where are you staying now?" Quinn sat back on her chair and Brittany followed, sitting on the empty chair next to hers.

"Right now I'm bummin on the cousins couch until I get enough money to pay for my own place." Quinn got excited. "What?"

"I have a extra room. You can stay with me."

"Oh no, I couldn't impose on you like that." Brittany leaned back on her chair.

"it's fine. Please I insist." Slowly, Brittany nodded. "And hey, I never got to thank you for what you did... You know. Back when we.."

"Hey. Don't mention it alright. It was my job. And still is."

Brittany's thoughts had taken her back to that hot and unbearable day in Afghanistan. The air was dry and dust was flying everywhere. Before she got too deep I. Her memories Quinn snapped her out of it.

"Hey. Don't go there alright. You still have dreams and stuff?"

"I do. It doesn't affect my work though, if that's what you're worried about." Brittany's PTSD was much more milder than when she first came home from her deployment, but there were always things that triggered her.

"Don't worry okay? I get the same way. If you ever need anything. Anything. I'm here okay."

Quinn smiled, and Brittany returned the gesture.

Santana came walking out of the building. "You ready? I'm gonna take you to see Chief Shuester."

"Good to go."

"I'll catch up with you after shift okay? That way we can get your things."

"Alright. See you later Fabray."

Santana and Quinn walked into the fire house and she was introduced to the rest of the guys that were a part of Truck 5.

"This is Hummel and Flannagan. And you met Evans, he's our new candidate. this is the kitchen." They walked down the hallway as she pointed out where the sleeping quarters were and where the locker room was. Chief Shuester was standing by his door.

"Brittany. Welcome to 51."


	3. Her Story

Brittany walks into Chief Shuester's office and shuts the door.

"It's a great pleasure to have you here at 51." He walks around and sits behinds his desk. "I've heard a lot of good things about you. You're a very decorated soldier. Why did you decide to get out of the Army? I mean, if you don't mind me asking."

"I don't mind. I loved being in, but there were certain circumstances that pushed me to get out."

Chief Shuester nodded. "Well, if there is anything that I can do for you just let me know okay?"

"I will. Thank you."

"No problem. Now. Let's just go over some of your paperwork and then I'll let you go back to Lopez. She has a couple other things she wants to show you."

While Brittany was in the office with the Chief, Santana found Quinn and they sat and talked.

"How come you've never mentioned her before?"

"I mean, I have a couple times I just haven't said her name. Pierce was an amazing combat medic. You'll love her. And I can almost guarantee that you'll her in more ways than just her than just as a coworker."

"Shut up, Q."

"I'm serious. She's an amazing girl. Plus, you need to get rid of Dani already. She's toxic." Santana rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair. "You know I'm right. Let me guess, that's was her that called you earlier."

"So what if it was?"

"San she calls you like every on the hour on the hour cause she thinks you're fucking cheating on her. I don't know how you can stay with her." Before Santana had the chance to open her mouth, Quinn started again. "Oh wait let me guess. You love her. Open your eyes San. If you don't answer your phone because you're on a call she gets mad and you guys argue. You're out here saving people's lives. She doesn't know what it's like to be in a relationship with a first responder."

Santana didn't have an answer for Quinn. She knew she was right. She'd been with Dani for almost a year now. By now, she should've got used to her hours and the fact that she can't always text back when she gets a text message. But she hasn't and it's making it really hard for Santana. When they first started dating, Santana was totally in love with this girl. She was beautiful, sweet and knew all the right things to say to make her tingle inside. But as the months went on, Santana saw a different side of her. She became clingy and selfish. Santana knew she deserved better but she was afraid that with her long hours and busy schedule, no one would ever want to love her. She believed that Dani did, so she put up with her temper tantrums and bitch fits out of love.

"You're trying to hard to keep something that doesn't work." Quinn placed her hand on Santana's shoulder. "You can't be afraid to be alone. You won't ever be alone. You have me, and you have all of us here."

"I know. I know that, but sometimes it's just.. It's nice alright. To have someone there to talk to about my day. To lay next to and cuddle with after shift."

"You can't hold on to this girl because of those things. You'll find someone new. You're beautiful, you're young, and you're an amazing singer. Don't be so hard on yourself." Quinn stood up at the sound of the Chief's door opening. She stood behind Santana and whispered. "Give this girl a chance. I promise, you won't be disappointed."

Brittany walked out of the office. Before she left, she shook the Chief's hand and continued walking back towards the common area.

"You ready to show me the ambo? My last house, their ambo was like 15 years old and smelt like old people."

"Don't worry, it smells nothing like old people." Santana laughed as she stood up. They walked back outside together to where the ambulance was parked.

She unlocked the back door and opened it up. It smelt brand new, with a hint of Clorox.

"Nice."

"It's just a couple years old, 51 just got a hold of it not even two months before I was assigned here." She stepped up into the rig and held her hand out. "So I keep it as clean as I possible can."

Brittany took her hand and stepped up. Santana's hand was warm, and for a second she thought that they held hands for more than the few milliseconds it took her to get into the rig. She shook it off, thinking nothing of it.

"I'll give you that. It's spotless in here."

Santana showed her where all the equipment belonged. They climbed into the front seat and Santana started it up.

"I gotta fill her up. You mind going for a ride?"

Brittany buckled up and got comfortable in her seat. "I'm ready. Let's do it."

On the drive to the gas station, they started talking.

"So why'd you move out here to Lima? I mean, it's not everyday that someone says ' _alright. Lima, Ohio it is.'_ " Santana made a left and continued driving.

"I just needed somewhere that I could start over. Where I wouldn't run into anyone I knew."

"I guess seeing Quinn was a bummer then." Brittany laughed.

"Oh no. I was actually pretty excited. I haven't seen her in years."

"You knew her from the Army? She was a.. 91 Bravo? I think." They were stopped at a red light now.

"Yup. A mechanic. I'd always have to go to them because our truck would always break down. So whenever I'd go to them I'd hang out with Fabray."

"That's cool. You guys seem really close." Brittany looked out the window, her memories resurfacing once more. She saw fire, heard people screaming. Her ears were ringing loudly, but did her best to get herself out of the drivers seat of her humvee. She crawled on the dirt to find the closest cover she could. "Pierce?"

Brittany shook out of it, realizing that they were already parked at the gas station.

"Sorry. I kind of got lost in thought."

"It's alright." Santana filled the ambulance and they headed back to 51.

"Enough about me, what about you? How'd you end up here?"

"Me? Oh this was always a childhood dream of mine. I grew up here in Lima. And right after high school I went to school to get my certifications." She never took her eyes off of the road. "Been a paramedic ever since. I'm 24 now, so that makes me a paramedic for about 5 years."

"That's a long time. I'm guessing you love what you do?" Santana nodded rapidly.

"Love it. Way more than I should." They pulled into the garage and Santana turned off the ambulance. "How about you? You love what you do? I mean, you must. A combat medic must be way more intense though."

"It was. I love my job, but the things I've seen while I was deployed was too much for me." She looked out the passenger side window at Quinn who was sitting at the squad table with Abrams and Anderson. "I'm sorry. I'm tired."

"Oh. It's alright. I'm sorry if I brought up something that wasn't appropriate."

"No no, you didn't. Don't worry about it." Brittany seemed a little on edge. She needed to get to her bag. "Just come get me if we get a call."

And with that Brittany jumped out and headed for the sleeping quarters.

Quinn turned to see where Brittany was going but she didn't stop to talk to her. She got up from the table and joined Santana in the ambo.

"What happened? Did you already try to hit on her and fail?" Quinn started to chuckle.

"No, I mean I was talking to her like super casually. And we were talking about Army and stuff." As she said Army, Quinn shut the passenger side door.

"What exactly did you guys talk about, San." Her voice had a serious tone to it.

"Nothing too important, just why she chose to get out of the Army and whatever. Oh she kinda mentioned how she would hang out with you when their truck would break down. Then she kinda spaced after that."

Quinn was looking down at her feet, like she was contemplating whether she should tell her or not.

"I am telling you this in confidence, San. You can't go asking her questions or anything alright."

"I got it, don't worry. I won't tell a soul."

"When we were deployed, yes. We were really close. Deployment takes a toll on people. But Pierce, she was really optimistic. She was always happy. Always trying to cheer people up. When she met me, I was in a bad place. It was like her mission to cheer me up." Quinn looked up at her. "One day, we had a convoy and about halfway through it we got hit with a roadside bomb. Bombs, actually."

"Whoa. And since she was a medic, she had to help with the wounded? Those kind of images, you can't get out of your head."

"Yeah. She did. And you're right, you can't." Quinn lifted her shirt up to show Santana her scars. "She saved my life."


	4. The Last Time

**_Afghanistan, 4 Years Ago_ **

_"Good. What does AR 670-1 cover?"_

_"It covers the wear of Army uniforms and insignia." Brittany answered with confidence._

_They had been driving for over three hours now, and Sergeant (Sgt.) Rose was asking Brittany questions to study for the upcoming board. She was only a PFC, but it was good to be prepared. Brittany was a high speed soldier, and Sgt. Rose was determined to get her up to Sgt within the next two years._

_"Very good, Pierce. You never cease to amaze me. I only gave you this stuff to study a couple days ago and you haven't gotten one question wrong."_

_"What can I say, Sgt. I'm motivated, hooah." Brittany laughed, knowing that her Sgt probably caught onto the fact that she was making fun of her._

_"Ha ha very funny. Okay next question. What is the third.."_

_**BOOOOM** _ _._

_Brittany stepped on the brakes and they came to a complete stop. A roadside bomb had gone off at the front of their convoy. After about ten seconds, another bomb went off, this time hitting a humvee that was about two humvees away._

_"Go Pierce. Get out and find cover."_

_Brittany could barely hear her Sgt over the ringing in her ears. Sgt Rose pushed on Brittany's shoulder, guiding her to open her door and climb out. The convoy was being hit with indirect fire now, so it was important that they got to cover right away. Brittany was crawling on the ground, scrambling to the closest place where it would be safe to hide until the rain of bullets subsided._

_People were screaming, the humvees that were hit were on fire. Sgt Rose had climbed out of the truck and ran over to where Brittany was taking cover with a couple other soldiers. She had to calm the girl down and fast, because in a couple minutes they'd need to tend to the wounded soldiers._

_"Pierce I need you to look at me. It's go time alright. We need to stabilize the soldiers that were directly hit with the roadside bomb. We have reinforcements on the way but I don't know how much time they have. I got the humvee in the back, you go up to the one in the front. Take someone with you so you have some cover."_

_Brittany nodded, and had one of the soldiers that was taking cover with her cover her as they ran for the humvee that led the convoy._

_The door was blown off, but there was no sign of the driver. She looked down to see a trail of blood leading to the ditch that was immediately to their left._

_"They took cover in the ditch. Come on. I don't know how bad the wounds are. We'll move on three. Ready?" The boy nodded. "Three."_

_They moved towards the ditch and Brittany slid down the embankment, with the boy following behind her. She spotted the soldier laying face down about five feet away. She immediately ran over to them and saw the puddle of blood that was becoming very large._

_"I'm gonna turn you over alright?" Brittany turned the soldier over only to realize that it was Quinn. "Fabray."_

_Brittany ripped her ACU top off so that she could see the wound better. She were pretty bad, the left side of her body was just open wounds. There were pieces of metal embedded in her skin. She didn't know how deep they were. Brittany started wracking her brain for treatment methods. She wasn't about to lose her. Brittany did what she could, she applied a tourniquet above the huge gash on Quinn's left arm, hoping that would help with the bleeding. Then she wrapped and covered the wounds that she could so that it could control the blood loss._

_"You're gonna be alright, you'll be alright."_

_Brittany turned back to the boy and grabbed him by the arm._

_"I need you to go and get Sgt. Rose or SSG. Flynn. Now. And move."_

_He took off running back towards the humvees._

_"P-Pierce.." Brittany looked down at Quinn, who was trying to grab onto her hand. She took Quinn's in hers, and squeezed tightly. "Thank you. F-For everything."_

_"Hey don't be talking like that, Fabray. We're gonna get you outta here."_

_Sgt. Rose had come running with the boy and sat next to Brittany._

_"What's going on, Pierce?" Brittany was still holding onto Quinn's hand._

_"She needs to be taken to the hospital. She has multiple metal shards embedded on her left side and I don't know how deep they are."_

_"Alright. I already called it in, but she'll go because the other soldier that's wounded isn't as bad as she is." Brittany looked back at Quinn, making sure that she was still conscious. "Go with her."_

* * *

Once at the hospital, the doctors took over and got Quinn into surgery. Brittany stayed within the hospital and assisted where she could. She wanted to stay until she knew what was going to happen to Quinn.

"PFC Pierce." Brittany turned to see the doctor waiting for her by the doors. "You did a fine job. You saved her life. If you didn't take the course of action you did, she wouldn't have made it. She's not awake yet, but you can go see her."

Brittany followed the doctor down the hall to Quinn's room. She was hooked up to all kinds of cords and machines. Her left side was wrapped tightly, with no sign of blood or anything coming from it.

"Your Sgt got in touch with us, a truck will be coming for you in the morning." He checked Quinn's vitals one more time before leaving the room. "The cafeteria is open all night so you can head down there whenever you're ready."

Brittany waited all night for Quinn to wake up. She understood that her body had gone through a great deal of shock so she may not wake up for a couple days. She only left the room to get some food but she came back immediately, only to find that Quinn hadn't woken up. She dozed off once in a while, but never fully went to sleep.

Morning came and Sgt. Rose and her First Sgt. had come to pick her up from the hospital. Before leaving, she wrote Quinn a note and left it on the desk near her bed.

And that was the last time she saw Quinn Fabray.


	5. Live

Brittany shot up in her bed in a cold sweat. She must've fallen asleep without realizing it.

It was dark now, a couple of the guys were sleeping. She looked down at her watch, 1:30 am. She glanced over at Santana's bed, which was empty. It had looked like she was sleeping at one point but got up. Brittany walked out to the kitchen to get something to eat when she saw that Santana and Quinn were both passed out on the couch with the TV watching them. Quietly, she got a banana from the bunch that was sitting on the counter then walked outside.

The cold air was nice, she could feel herself starting to calm down. She heard the door open behind her, but she didn't bother to look back.

"Hey." It was Quinn. "You alright?"

"I'm good. Just trying to calm down." Brittany sat down on the bench right outside the garage, and Quinn did the same.

"You saw it, didn't you." Quinn reached into her pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. "Do you mind?"

"No go ahead. Actually, could I bum one?" She grabbed a cigarette from the open pack that Quinn was holding out to her. "Thanks."

They lit up and took a deep breath in. They both knew what was coming, and they both knew they had to talk about it.

"Pierce.."

"Yeah?"

"I just wanted to.. Seriously. You know, thank you. For what you did." Brittany looked down at the ground, then back at up Quinn who had tears in her eyes. "What you did for me. I thought I was gonna die. After the bomb went off, I crawled to cover. And when I got there, I honestly thought that I was gonna bleed out right there."

The wind started to blow a little. Quinn wiped her eyes before the tears had the chance to fall.

"I was never gonna let you die. When I saw you there, laying on the ground." She took another puff of her cigarette. When Brittany blew the smoke out, she started her sentence again. "When I saw you there, I knew that I was going to save you. There was no way I was gonna let you go home in a body bag. For weeks after I left the hospital I wondered what happened to you. I prayed that you were going to be alright."

Quinn went into her wallet and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Is that.."

"Yeah. I've kept it. And I read it everyday. When I wake up in the morning, I take it out and look at it. Then I put it in my wallet and start my day." She handed it to Brittany. "It was the last thing I had from you. We never exchanged numbers, or anything. And by the time I got back to Bragg, you had already PCS'd."

Brittany held the paper in her hands.

"I don't know why I didn't leave my number when I wrote the note. I should've."

"It's alright. It was in destiny's plan for us to cross paths again." Quinn put her cigarette out and stood up. "You're welcome to join me and Santana in the common room if you'd like."

Brittany nodded, and Quinn turned and walked back into the building. She looked down at the piece of paper that was nearly four years old. It was worn out, and thin but still held itself together. She opened it, looking down at what she had written to Quinn before she headed back out to join the rest of her company.

'LIVE'


	6. Lollipops

Brittany walked back into the house to find that Santana was now awake and sitting up on the couch.

"Oh hey."

"Hey Lopez." Brittany walked into the room and sat next to her on the couch. "Where's Fabray at?"

"She went to the bathroom." She looked over at Brittany, who looked exhausted. "You good?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. You don't mind if I join you two out here?"

"Not at all." Santana scooted closer to where Brittany was sitting.

"Do you guys always sleep out here?"

"No, just whenever Quinn can't sleep. She'll come to my bed and wake me up and ask if I'll sleep out here with her."

"You never, you know, ask her what's wrong?" Santana shook her head. "Ever?"

"I did the first time. That was, when she first came to the house. But I never asked her after that. I knew it was Army related, so I didn't want to bring up old memories. I'm sorry if I said anything earlier that triggered anything."

"Don't worry about it. It's alright."

Quinn came walking back into the room and sat on the chair next to the couch.

"You took my spot, Pierce." She said, with laughter following.

"Move your feet, lose you seat."

Quinn punched her playfully, then got comfortable in her chair. Brittany handed Quinn her paper back and she proceeded to place it in her wallet.

Brittany tried to stay up and watch the episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer that was playing on the tv but she fell asleep.

* * *

She a woken up by Candidate Evans cooking breakfast in the kitchen. Santana was leaning on Brittany's shoulder, but she didn't mind. She took a couple seconds to look at the girl who was out cold next to her. Brittany didn't move too much, she didn't want to wake her up. Santana was beautiful, she had a short sleeved shirt on that made her arms pop.

Brittany turned to see if Quinn was still sitting on her chair but she wasn't. She got up from her spot and headed for the bathrooms to freshen up.

"Good Morning, Brittany." She turned to see Evans talking to her while he flipped a pancake. "Hope you like pancakes, I got plenty."

"I do actually. Thanks. I'll be back out to grab a plate."

As she walked to the bathrooms the rest of the guys were walking out to the common area. Strangely, she felt at home here. She didn't know what to expect when she first got to Lima but it was much more than she expected. She took her things into the bathroom and started to brush her teeth.

Santana woke up a little after Brittany got off of the couch. She had been awake the whole time, but didn't want Brittany to think that she was weird and purposely pretended to sleep. Which she did, but no one needed to know that. In the middle of the night, Santana got cold so she moved closer to Brittany. It was like she was a heater, because she could feel the warmth coming off of her.

Quinn came back into the building after her normal run in the morning and went straight to the fridge to get her protein shake.

"Hey." Santana said as she walked over towards the kitchen. "Had a good run?"

"That I did. I did three miles in less than 20 minutes." Santana was grabbing a bunch of pancakes as Quinn finished her sentence, and ended up putting four of them back on the plate.

"Well that just makes me feel fat as fuck." Quinn laughed. "I'm serious."

"You're not fat, stop tryna convince yourself that you are." Evans threw two more pancakes onto Santana's plate.

"If anything, you need _more_ food. You don't eat enough."

"Ha. Very funny Evans. I do eat a ton of food all the time."

Brittany came walking back out from the restrooms with a smile on her face.

"I'm ready to get some pancakes in this belly." She tapped on her stomach then grabbed a plate so she could get some pancakes.

Santana chuckled to herself. _That was the cutest thing ever,_ she thought. But she had to stop thinking like that. She had a girlfriend. A girlfriend that didn't understand her career. That was selfish all the time. That didn't ever take her feelings into consideration. Dani aways tried to pull a guilt trip on Santana, and that was the worse feeling in the world. She hated it. Maybe it was time to break up with her. As she fell asleep last night, she mentally wrote a pros and cons list about staying with Dani. And of course, the cons list was much longer.

So maybe it was the right thing to do.

As she got her phone out of her pocket, the siren went off.

_Ambulance 21, we have a fall at 125 East Lima Road._

Santana shoved her phone back into her pocket.

"Ready Pierce? First run." Brittany was attempting to shove as much food as she could into her mouth before getting up from the counter and heading out the door.

"Don't worry. Your plates will be in the oven."

"Thanks Evans!" Santana shouted as she ran out the double doors to the garage, with Brittany following close behind.

They jumped into the ambo and took off down the street, sirens wailing.

"125 East Lima Road is the elementary school."

Santana always had a soft side for children. Every case that involved a child, made her heart hurt. She had a special place in the case where she kept a jar of lollipops. She never told any of the guys about it, because they'd probably sneak in and steal a couple when Santana wasn't around.

They pulled into the school and parked near the office. A school admin lady was waiting for them outside near the parking lot.

"He's this way." They followed behind with the gurney to the playground. A teacher was sitting with a little boy on a bench, who was holding his arm. "He fell while playing on the jungle gym. We think he broke his arm."

"Hey bud. I'm Santana, and this is Brittany. We're here to help you." He looked up at Santana. He had tears falling from his eyes, which made Santana's heart melt. "It's gonna be okay. Can I see your arm?"

He held his arm out and Santana gently held it so she could examine it.

"What's your name?"

"My names Austin."

"Well Austin, you have a cool name." Santana turned to Brittany and nodded her head, confirming that it was broken. She pulled the teacher on the side to talk to her separately. "Looks like you hurt your arm pretty bad. Let's take a ride in the ambulance so we can get you fixed up. Sound good?"

Austin nodded his head, and did as he was told. Santana walked him to the gurney and lifted him up so he could sit.

"There we go."

Brittany talked to the teacher who said that she had called his parents and they were okay with him riding in the ambulance to the hospital, and that they'd meet them there.

Once locked in and ready to go, Santana climbed into the drivers seat and Brittany sat in the back with Austin.

"Are the doctor's gonna fix me?" Brittany smiled, and simply nodded. Which the boy understood. "Cool. Cause I can't miss school tomorrow. I have a math test."

"A math test huh? Do you like math?"

"I do. It's my favorite."

Brittany spotted the lollipops in the case, and decided to grab one out for him.

"Hey." She whispered. "Don't tell Santana, but I'm gonna take one of her lollipops to give to you. You can't tell her though. Promise?"

His face lit up at the word 'lollipop'. Excitedly, he nodded his head and she grabbed the jar out and let him pick one.

"Alright. Now put that in your pocket and don't let her see it."

When they reached the hospital, the girls took Austin inside and got his paperwork done. His parents were inside waiting, and Santana explained that he had a fracture that would heal in a couple months. He'd just have to wear a cast. The parents thanked her and they were on their way.

Brittany climbed into the passenger side and shut the door.

"You gave him a lollipop didn't you."

"What?! Noooo. What lollipops?" Brittany laughed.

"I saw you whispering to him." Santana held her fist out. "Pound it. You're good with kids, Pierce. I like that."

When they reached 51, they jumped out and headed straight for the kitchen. The food was still warm, to their surprise. They sat and talked for a while, enjoying each others company.

Lt. Hudson came into the kitchen shortly after. "Hey Lopez, your gf is outside. She seems pretty pissed."

"Fuck, just cause I didn't call her this morning." Santana got up from her seat and wiped her mouth before walking outside. She was mumbling something to herself, but Brittany couldn't make out what she was saying.

"I'm not trying to assume anything, but I'm guessing her girlfriend is the crazy type?"

Lt. Hudson sat where Santana was sitting, and ate a piece of bacon off of her plate. "You could say that. I mean, we're all a little crazy on the inside. It's just that some people choose to show it more than others. I'll just leave it at that."

He walked away, leaving Brittany alone with her thoughts.

A couple minutes later, Brittany could hear screaming coming from the garage. She finished up her plate and put it in the sink before leaving the kitchen. She walked outside, while Abrams was walking in.

"Girl you don't want to be out here." She looked at him, confused. "Trust me. When Lopez and her girl goes at it, there's no stopping them."

He walked past her into the building.

Santana and Dani were on the opposite side of the ambulance.

"I was on a fucking call, Dani. I didn't purposely ignore your phone call."

Santana's voice was stern and forceful, Brittany knew she was upset.

"You could've at least texted me after I called."

"Are you fucking kidding me? Text you? I WAS ON A CALL! What did you want me to do? Pull the ambulance over to the side so I could let you know I was busy? Are you out of your fucking mind?!"

Brittany cautiously made her way around the ambulance. She was a very compassionate person, and although she only knew Santana for about 24 hours, she still cared for the girl.

"Is everything alright?"

Dani shot her a look. And if looks could kill, Brittany would've been on the floor.

"Who the fuck are you? Oh. You must be the bitch that Santana is cheating on me with." She turned back to Santana. "Was there even a boy that broke his arm this morning? Or did you just make that shit up?"

"Excuse me?" Brittany's tone had changed.

Dani scoffed. "How about you take your slutty ass back inside."

"Don't fucking talk to her like that Dani." Santana stepped closer to Dani. And for a second, Brittany was afraid that she was gonna hit her.

"So you're defending her?!"

"I'm defending a friend." She turned back to Brittany, who was standing in shock. She had never heard a couple argue this way. It made her wonder what Santana saw in a girl who would talk to her as if she were dirt. "We're done, Dani."

"Oh? So you're breaking up with me?"

"Yeah. We're done. I don't need all this bullshit from you. I don't need you coming up to 51, and blowing shit out of proportion. This is where I fucking work and you're embarrassing me. I don't need you. So leave. We're done."

Dani rolled her eyes and started to walk back towards her car. "I'm glad we're done Santana. Goodbye."

Santana watched as Dani got into her car and drive away from 51 for the last time.

Brittany stood there for a minute, watching to see how Santana's mental state would be. Going through a break up is hard. And of all people, Brittany knew exactly how the girl felt. Santana turned around, wiping her face with her jacket sleeve.

"Hey. It's gonna be okay." She wrapped her arms around the latina, who was now quietly sobbing in her chest. "I know that must've been hard. But if it means anything, I'm proud of you."

They walked back inside, and Santana went to the bathroom.

Quinn came walking out of her quarters and sat next to Brittany on the couch.

"I heard Dani was just over here. I don't even bother to come out of my room when she's here. I hate how she talks to Santana."

"They just broke up, actually." Quinn's eyes widened.

"Seriously?" Brittany nodded. "It's about damn time. I've been telling her to for over four months now."

The shift bell rang and the next shift of firefighters were walking into the building.

"Come on. We'll check up on Santana later. Let's get your things from your cousins place." They got up from the couch went to grab their things.

It was a nice day, a slight breeze with clouds painting the sky here and there.

"Fabray. Lemme see your phone." Quinn tossed her her iphone and she opened a new text message to send to Santana.

' _Hope you're alright. Here's my number. Take it easy alright, let me know if you need anything. ANYTHING.'_

And within a few seconds, she got a reply.

_'Maybe you and Quinn can come over tonight?'_

Brittany only had one answer, and she knew Quinn's would be the same.

' _We'll be there.'_


	7. Cookie Dough Ice Cream

After picking up Brittany's things from her cousins house, they headed over to Quinn's apartment.

Brittany looked over at Quinn, who was concentrating on driving. They drove in silence, which didn't really bother Brittany since she was already lost in her own thoughts.

After leaving the Quinn in the hospital in Afghanistan, Brittany tried her best to find out what happened to her. Since she hadn't heard about her dying she knew she was alive. It was the fact of getting in touch with her that would be difficult. She tried for months. She bugged her chain of command to see if they could get any answers but she got nothing. When she got back to Ft. Bragg, she only had about three months there then she left for Ft. Carson.

Brittany thought that she was never going to see Quinn again. But here she was. Sitting with her, on her way to Quinn's apartment where she was going to be living.

"Here we are."

The place was beautiful. It seemed brand new, maybe less than a year old. It was the perfect size for a pair of roommates which made Brittany wonder why Quinn would want such a huge place to herself.

"Wow, this place is amazing." They got out of Quinn's truck and walked into her apartment.

Quinn showed Brittany to her room and left her to get settled. She took a couple minutes to put her things away in the dresser that was readily sitting in the room. It was like she either had a roommate or was waiting for someone to move in and they never did. Brittany didn't have a lot of things, she wasn't much of a materialistic person.

She walked outside to the living room. Quinn was in the shower, she could hear the water running. Brittany started wandering around the living room. She came across a little case that was closed. _Maybe I shouldn't open it,_ she thought. It was labeled 'Sergeant Fabray, Quinn L.'. So she knew that it was Army related. Brittany lifted the cover and saw that it was all of Quinn's decorations. One that stuck out in particular was her Purple Heart ribbon. It's given to a soldier when they are wounded or killed in combat. Brittany slowly closed the case and turned to sit on the couch when she realized that Quinn had just come down the stairs. She was in shorts and a PT (Physical Training) shirt, with her hair tied up in a messy bun.

"It's nice isn't it? The case." Brittany looked back at the box that was sitting on the coffee table. "My unit gave it to me when I got out."

"That's nice of them. I had to buy my own case, I didn't want to lose the things I worked so hard in the Army for."

"Staff Sergeant Pierce huh? It has a nice ring to it." Brittany chuckled, because she knew it did. "Let me see yours. I'm sure you brought it with you right?"

"I did. But it's nothing, I have just about the same amount of ribbons as you." Quinn stood up from behind the refrigerator door and shot Brittany a look. "Fine. Fine. I'll go get it. You have such a way with words."

They both laughed as Brittany walked back into her room to get her awards case out. She hadn't looked at it in such a long time. When she walked back into the living room Quinn was sitting on the couch with a bowl of cereal in hand.

"Seriously? Cereal?"

"It's my favorite thing to eat, alright. Don't judge me. And plus, you should've known that already." Brittany plopped herself down next to Quinn.

"Old habits die hard, huh."

"Something like that." She spoke with a full mouth of food. "Here. Trade. Let me see your case."

Brittany took Quinn's cereal out of her hand and handed her the case. She opened it and was surprised.

"Wow. You had all kinds of ribbons. Jesus. What is this, like four rows? Same amount my ass." Brittany just sort of sat there. She was always humble about her awards and ribbons, she never really showed them off.

"I was just doing my job."

Quinn continued to look at Brittany's ribbons.

"A.. Bronze Star?"

"Yeah. That deployment, was just hectic. After that roadside bomb, we got attacked at the FOB (Forward Operating Base) and the amount of casualties and wounded we had that time around was too much."

"Now this, is truly impressive." She shut the case and they traded once more. Quinn looked down at her watch and saw that it was almost 6 pm. "Oh hey. Let's get going. Santana's place right?"

"Yeah." Brittany didn't show it, but she was excited.

"Let's stop by the store first and grab her some ice cream. That usually eases the pain for her."

After making a quick run to the store, the girls made their way to Santana's apartment. It wasn't too far from Quinn's, and was just as nice as hers.

Quinn got her keys from her pocket and went to unlock the front door.

"Yeah. I have a key. And she has a key to mine. So if she just randomly is sitting on the couch in the living room one day, you'll know why." When they walked inside they found Santana sitting at the dining room table with a 6 pack of Corona sitting in front of her. "Corona?"

"I told you I wanted to try something new." She took another sip from her beer. "Hey Pierce. What you got in that bag?"

Brittany sat at the table next to Santana and gave her the pint of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream she bought.

"I hope you like this flavor. It's my favorite."

"Did you tell her I like this kind?" Santana turned to Quinn. She was now sitting on opposite side of Santana, grinning.

"No, I didn't actually. She picked that out herself I didn't say anything."

Santana turned back to Brittany and smiled. "Thanks Pierce." She placed a kiss on Brittany's cheek and she blushed.

"You're welcome."

"I'm guessing neither of you want anything to drink?" Santana looked at both of them, who were both nodded in agreement. "More for me then."

For the rest of the night, they tried to cheer Santana up. Which didn't take much, since Brittany was there. She constantly made jokes and had the two other girls laughing. As it got late, Quinn got tired and she went to lay down on the couch.

"Ha ha. Pierce you're funny. I really like that about you." Santana placed her hand on Brittany's and squeezed.

Santana looked into Brittany's eyes for a couple seconds before breaking contact. She took her hand back so she could drink from her beer. The short amount of contact caused them to get butterflies.

"Quinn's always tired. She never stays up past 11." Santana said, quickly changing the subject. She was looking over at the couch where the blonde was sleeping. "I always try to take her out to the club with me but she always ends up falling asleep."

"Oh so you're the club type?" It peaked Brittany's interest. "I like to dance."

"Well we'll have to go sometime." Brittany smiled, as Santana drank from her bottle.

"How did you and Fabray become friends? I mean, yeah you both work in at 51 but not everyone at the house is as close as you two are."

"Me and Quinn, we didn't have the greatest start. I was the only female at 51 before she became Lieutenant for Squad. When she came to the house I was just a little envious because she was doing amazing things. They all bragged that she was the best Lt they seen for any Squad unit in Northern Ohio. Possibly in all of Ohio." She took another sip from her beer to finish up the bottle. She opened the last one before starting again. "I was jealous and in a way I sort of held a grudge against her. I felt like she was purposely trying to make me look bad but that wasn't the case at all."

"How did you get past all of that?"

"This one day, everyone was in the garage and because I didn't like Quinn so much I was easily irritated by thing she said and constantly twisted her words. She said something that I thought she meant in a way to mock me. And a little after that she got up from the squad table and went inside. I followed her, planning what I was going to say in my head. I had enough of her. But when I found her in her quarters, she was crying. And I felt bad. As much as I didn't like her, I couldn't stand to see someone cry."

Santana was being genuine.

"I calmed her down and we talked. She wasn't crying because of anything I did or said. But I still felt guilty. I apologized for the way that I acted around her. And being the forgiving person that she is, she forgave me. She forgave me for something that she had no idea was going on in the first place."

"So why was she crying?"

"You know? She never told me what it was. As much as I asked, she never did tell me." Santana finished her last beer and took the empty bottles to the sink. "It's getting late. We should get some sleep."

"I'll just sleep on the recliner next to Quinn."

"Don't be silly. Come on. I have enough space in my bed for two." Santana was walking upstairs now, motioning to Brittany to follow her.

Brittany followed hesitantly, she didn't want to make things awkward between her and Santana. When she walked into the room, Santana took off her shirt and laid on her bed. Her body was amazing. Not to mention her breasts. She got under the sheets and patted the empty space next to her.

"Are you sure? I mean I really don't mind sleeping downstairs."

"Are you implying that you don't want to sleep with me, Pierce?"

Oh it wasn't that. The Good Lord knew it wasn't that.

"I- I uh.."

"Just come over here and lay down already."

Brittany walked around the bed and got comfortable under the sheets as well.

For years, the only way that Brittany could fall asleep was if she put her arms above her head. It came in handy when she was deployed, because she had the hardest time sleeping while she was out there. She raised her arms above her head and got relaxed.

Santana was asleep already, exhausted from a long shift and the 6 pack she drank. In her sleep, she moved closer to Brittany and placed her head in the crook of Brittany's neck. It caught Brittany off-guard, and for a second she wanted to jump out of the bed. But she didn't. She stayed.

* * *

The next morning, Santana wakes up and realizes that she's pretty much cuddling with Brittany. Slowly, she gets off of the bed. She's careful enough not to wake her up. The last thing she'd want is for the girl to wake up and find that they had been cuddling. For a couple seconds, she stared down at the blonde who was fast asleep on her bed. It didn't make sense to her. She only knew this girl for a short time yet she felt so comfortable around her. Like she was able to let go in front of her and tell her all of her deepest secrets.

Santana threw her shirt back on and headed downstairs, where she found Quinn making breakfast on the stove.

"Good morning." Quinn turned back and smiled. "Had a good night?"

"Shut up, Q. I didn't want her sleeping on the recliner."

"So you let her sleep with you in your bed?" Santana walked over to where Quinn was standing and punched her on the shoulder. "Ow. Damn."

"Nothing happened." Quinn rolled her eyes. "I swear!"

"Okay okay I'll believe you."

They talked about rumours that had been going around at the firehouse. That's when they came full circle to the topic of Brittany. They each made a plate of food and sat at the table.

"I told you. She's the kind of girl you need, San. She's perfect for you."

"I mean sure. She made me laugh like all night. She has a cute smile, and a great personality." As she was finishing her sentence, she started to blush.

"You're blushing!"

"Shut up."

"You like her."

Quinn was right and she knew it. Although she had only met Brittany yesterday, she did spend most of the time with her. Even though she had only scratched the service, she knew Brittany was a one of a kind person.

"Fine, you're right. I do like her."

* * *

**AN: A bronze star is the fourth highest individual military award, and ninth highest by order of precedence in the US Military. So for Brittany to get this award is a very honorable achievement.**

**I will not reveal if Brittany dies or lives, lol. I know a lot of people have asked, but you guys will just have to wait till that's revealed later in the story.**


	8. Ducks and Kettle Corn

At the start of next shift, Brittany strolled in with Quinn and Santana. Their day off had been a eventful one. Santana and Quinn took Brittany around Lima to show her what little the town had.

* * *

**The Day Before**

"This is what you two call sight seeing? A petting zoo?" Brittany stepped into the gated area.

"Like we told you. This is the main attraction!" Santana playfully said as she ran up next to Brittany. "But seriously. This is all we have here. The closest thing would be Cedar Point or Six Flags."

"Come on. You know you think it's cute." Quinn was walking behind them, and on purpose.

Brittany loved animals. Big ones, small ones. You name it and she loved it. She especially loved ducks.

"I hear it." Brittany walked in the opposite direction of where the girls were headed and went straight to the ducks. "Oh. My. God. They're so cute!"

Brittany knelt down to see the baby ducklings closer.

"She likes ducks?" Santana took her phone out to take a picture.

"They're her favorite. Just, keep that in mind."

Santana quickly snapped a picture and took a couple seconds to look at it. Brittany's smile was absolutely beautiful. She set it as her wallpaper then slipped her phone back into her back pocket.

The girls spent about a hour looking around at the petting zoo then they took Brittany to Breadstix, which happened to be Santana's favorite restaurant.

"These breadsticks are amazing!" Brittany couldn't stop eating them. "Why aren't these on like the top ten lists for breadsticks in the world?"

Quinn laughed at the fact that she knew that Brittany would possibly go into breadstick-coma on the way home. After a delicious dinner, they all hopped into Quinn's truck and headed back to her place. As the truck ride got longer, Brittany's eye lids got heavier. She was sitting in the back seat and eventually drifted off into dreamland.

"She's sleeping?"

"Yeah. I'm sure she is." Quinn was stopped at a stoplight and turned back to look at the snoring blonde in her backseat. "Here. Let me do a test."

"And how are you gonna do that?" Santana was looking back now too.

"Pierce. I got kettle corn." Nothing. "There's your answer. She's asleep."

"Kettle corn? Seriously?"

"It's her favorite, San. I bought tons of it when we were deployed. The commissary never had any in stock because anytime they'd put more on the shelves I'd go straight in there and buy it all."

"Interesting."

The two friends continued their conversation until they reached Quinn's apartment. Santana stretched in her seat and grabbed onto the headrest. Quinn got out of the front seat and shut her door. She looked up at the sky and took a second to appreciate the wonderful day she just had with her friends.

"Alright so you got her right Lt? Just gonna throw her over your shoulder." Santana started laughing, only to realize that Quinn was no longer standing near the truck. "Fucker."

Santana opened the back door to find that Brittany was asleep, still in the same position.

"Come on, Pierce. Let's get you upstairs." And it was like Brittany heard her, she got up out of the truck and threw her arm over Santana's shoulders. "With your height I thought you'd be heavier. Weird."

Santana got them in the front door and up the stairs without banging into any walls or railings. When she got to Brittany's room, she opened the door and walked with her over to her bed. Before laying her down, Brittany turned and kissed Santana on the cheek. She felt her cheek get warm instantly, and she knew she was blushing. Santana laid her down and pulled the covers over walking over to the sliding door that led to the balcony outside of Brittany's room. Quietly, she unlocked and slid the door open so she could go outside.

It was a nice night. No wind and not a cloud in the sky. The moon shone brightly over the city now. She leaned on the railing and took a deep breath in. Whenever she came to Quinn's place, she'd spend a little time on the balcony by herself.

_I don't know what it is about her. Pierce. It's something about the way she holds herself. The way that she smiles, or the times when she tries to tell a joke but she finds it so funny that she can't stop laughing. Her laughter. It's infectious. From the moment I met her, I was just.. I don't know. Attracted. And I basically forgot about Dani. I was dating her for almost a year. Yet, I'm not a bit sad about it. And I give all that credit to Brittany._

She was brought from her thoughts when she heard the sliding door open. She turned to see that it was Brittany.

"Hey."

"You alright?" Santana was a bit worried, Brittany looked a bit unhinged.

"I'm good. Just had a bad dream, that's all. I needed to get some fresh air."

"I still feel really bad. I knew better than to just bring up Army stuff." Santana looked back at the view now, and Brittany walked up next to her.

"Don't worry about it. It was already popping up the moment I saw Fabray. It'll subside. Honest. Don't take it too hard." Brittany nudged Santana's arm playfully, then shivered. "It's kinda cold out here."

"Nah, I think it's nice. Here." She took off her hoodie and handed it to Brittany. "Put it on. I don't need you catching a cold after only working one shift with me."

"Thanks. But the real question is, how are you doing? You are the one that did just go through a break up." Brittany slipped the hoodie over her head and enjoyed the warmness it brought to her.

"I mean, I'm alright. I'm not super sad about it, but a break up is a break up I guess. I'm not gonna say that I'm happy about it, that'd just sound like me being a dick."

"It doesn't. You're allowed to be happy. I would be. After hearing how she talked to you? I would never do that to someone I was in a relationship with."

"Well that's good to know, you know. For future reference."

Santana turned to Brittany to find that she was already looking at her. When her brown eyes met her blue, it was like her heart stopped. What was seconds, felt like hours. Days. Months. Santana broke eye contact and started to panic a little.

"Well, I- uh.. It's pretty late." She looked down at her watch hoping that it would break the tension of what was now a super awkward moment. "We should get to bed. Gotta be up early to get to the house."

Brittany, looking a bit disappointed, nodded in agreement and walked back into the apartment. She laid back down on the bed.

"You joining me?"

"I don't know, am I? I mean it's your bed."

"True. I just don't really want to be alone after that dream. You don't mind do you? I'm probably gonna leave the tv on too." Brittany was getting comfortable as Santana joined her on the bed.

"I don't mind."

Brittany turned on the tv and slowly fell back to sleep.

Santana couldn't sleep. She mentally punched herself in the face, knowing that she messed up what could have been their first kiss.

And now she was hoping that it wouldn't be her last opportunity.


End file.
